Latest News
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Teaching for Mastery: changing mindset in maths
Wed 30 Jun 2021Our schools teach mathematics through a mastery approach, which develops in children a deep understanding of key maths concepts and allows them to make links across the different strands. This means they acquire a deep, long-term, secure and adaptable understanding of the subject. Here we catch up with John Canavan, Assistant Headteacher and Year 5/6 teacher at Hatton Park Primary School; and Malcolm Watson, Year 4 teacher at Histon and Impington Junior School, about the development of Teaching for Mastery across the Trust, the impact on children, and their support for other schools.
How did teaching for mastery begin for you?
JC: “It goes back to when I was at Histon and Impington Junior School with Lesley Birch as Headteacher. Through Lesley I was encouraged to complete a maths course at the University of Northampton, and I was offered the opportunity to go on a Department for Education (DfE) exchange programme to Shanghai as only one of two teachers from Cambridgeshire. I went over to Shanghai for two weeks, observed maths lessons and attended lectures at the local university; and Shanghai teachers then came here. I encouraged Histon and Impington Juniors to change to the maths mastery approach and it went from there. I have been supported all the way by some fantastic colleagues.”
MW: “I joined Histon and Impington Junior School in 2015 from a school in Kent, where I was previously maths leader. Not long after I became a trained maths mastery specialist through the Cambridge Maths Hub, which is also operating in Norfolk, Suffolk and Essex. Mastery is championed by the National Centre for Excellence in the Teaching of Mathematics, and there are five big ideas in Teaching for Mastery. All schools in the Trust have been through the mastery programme. Smaller steps in lessons was key: from an education system perspective we could not replicate exactly what was delivered in China.”
What has been the biggest change in approach?
JC: “Before we did a range of different things, including taking children outside the classroom to work at a slower pace, but basically this only increased the gap. Our approach was clearly not working for all pupils. We want everyone to learn together, everyone has access to the same learning, fluency, problem-solving and reasoning, and we also looked carefully at our use of language. This really helped lower attaining children feel part of the class rather than being separate and working outside away from their peers. We have tailored these principles to the needs of our children and it has worked in terms of attainment and progress.”
What other factors have supported the success?
MW: “Looking at other schools I have worked with I can honestly say that turnover of staff is a huge issue. You can find that schools we supported a few years ago now have different teams in place, so staff leave and they can go backwards. CPET does not have a high turnover of staff, so we have that consistency, and one of the reasons for that is the professional development opportunities we are given and the support we have to take that learning forward. Retention of NQTs is a big thing. I know lots of people who have come a long way here, colleagues who now lead the training themselves.”
Tell us more about the school-to-school support.
MW: “Through the Cambridge Maths Hub I have taken on a role to develop training on maths in other schools. I have six schools under my wing – each school visits Histon and Impington Juniors every half-term and we take one of the five mastery ideas and look at how that is working in practice. I have undertaken bespoke visits to schools to watch teaching and provide advice, for example around lesson planning, too. I am also delivering some school-to-school support through the Fenland and East Cambridgeshire Opportunity Area, funded by the DfE, as is John. These projects span 18 months to two years.”
JC: “I will go into schools and sit and listen to their approach to maths, ask what they are doing and how they are finding it; a mutually professional dialogue which is also a learning process for me. Support can include lesson design, or other areas they feel they need help with, and all this has been delivered in Zoom during the pandemic. It takes years to bring about change. I will have conversations with the Head and senior leaders. They then take this knowledge into planning, in class scrutiny, but training is one thing and they need to make sure it happens and is continually maintained. Then they need to continually monitor and support teachers.”
What advice would you give to other schools embarking on the mastery journey?
MW: “The Teaching for Mastery should be seen as a continuum. It is not happening every day in the classroom perfectly, but there has been real progression and ordinary classroom teachers are now assistant heads/maths leads. In opportunity area schools, especially, it is about changing mindsets. Primary schools are obviously measured on SATs, but it is at what point and how the emphasis on preparing pupils for tests is replaced by developing a deeper understanding through the teaching of maths.”
JC: “Firstly, there needs to be whole-school approach and you have to bring staff along with you. A little every now and then, which allows people to see the potential of mastery. Secondly, be realistic on timescales – this is not a year-long piece of work, it takes two, three or four years to see the impact. Again, small steps, starting at fluency for knowledge and developing teachers’ understanding of effective use of language. This way it becomes less onerous and you see the benefit straight away. Thirdly, give ownership – hear colleagues’ ideas, you cannot be regimented, but you need to be realistic in terms of not diluting the mastery approach.”
How do you reflect on your impact?
JC: “I have always had a passion for maths. I love to see children grow and develop, and foster a love for the subject, and we have always sought to counter the national picture of ‘can’t do’ maths. Before maths mastery, children did not have a deep understanding, the knowledge and the big ideas behind it, and were procedural mathematicians. This was impacting on GCSE results and beyond, because the understanding was not there. We want to create critical thinkers, rigorous learners, and build deep understanding of concepts. Every school is judged by results of course. You always need to respond to the children in the building, you cannot shirk that, but there is a bigger picture. If the children are happy, if they are enjoying themselves, the learning comes.”
MW: “I have delivered Headteacher training on what a mastery strategy and lessons might look like, and my thought is that building from foundation up to Year 6 develops confidence and efficiency, and a by-product of that is results come. But actually changing mindset on approach to the teaching of maths can have a deeper impact on children than one that simply seeks to prepare them for national tests.”
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Children’s wellbeing at the forefront of everything
Wed 23 Jun 2021Angie Waterson is Welfare Officer at Trumpington Park Primary School, the first CPET school to have this dedicated role. Here we talk to Angie about her passion for the job, the underpinning principles, and her future plans.
How did the Welfare Officer role come about?
“I started out as a parent helper at Histon and Impington Junior School and then moved into a teaching assistant role and undertook my Higher Level Teaching Assistant qualification 11 years ago. Part of my role was to work with SEND children and behaviour children on a one-to-one basis, and I ran numerous intervention groups. When Mel Shute was assigned to Histon, I became responsible for extra support in her class, and I undertook CAMHS mental health training too. As a result, my intervention became more nurturing in approach and more holistic. It was underpinned by the principle that we needed to get things in place, and get in much sooner. When Mel became Head at Trumpington I was asked to help out here initially for a short time – and it has now been three years.”
Tell us about the role, and what this involves.
“The role itself is still in its infancy but, in an area of so much need, essentially it is about re-assuring children that coming to school is safe, building their confidence and relationships with their families. We start and end with a focus on their mental health and wellbeing, and putting in place steps to support both children’s academic abilities and abilities to deal with things beyond the classroom. My day begins and finishes with being a welcoming presence on the school gate. Parents appreciate the opportunity to talk to me about how their children are feeling and to understand whether there is anything I need to pass on to their teacher, or something I need to pick up myself by signposting to additional support or inviting the parent in to talk through concerns. I sympathise, empathise and try to diffuse anything before they go into school and, that way, we make sure everyone in our community feels valued and supported. This has paid dividends: attendance has significantly improved, and because the relationships are already there this helped during lockdown calls to vulnerable families.”
What types of interventions do you encourage?
“Before lockdown, I introduced a breakfast club (and hope to reinstate this once we are able to) which was aimed at low-income families, those who needed support for a limited time or some nurture time, to give children a good, healthy breakfast and a calm start to the day. We have also set up and ran a series of lunchtime groups e.g. art, lego and library, for certain children to build friendships, confidence and self-esteem. These are the ideal way for them to meet other children and importantly talk to each other, as well as modelling behaviour. I have a special designated room with games and distractions which provides a quiet, reflective space that enables me to be on call for any child that may need extra support away from class too. This helps to diffuse situations, and use time in a more positive way. We do not want children to suppress their feelings, we want to really understand them. In a world of mental health issues our approach is to teach children to be emotionally literate, and about resilience and how to cope with challenge.”
How would you like the role to develop?
“It actually runs alongside my other role as Designated Safeguarding Lead – keeping children safe and building relationships – so that is an effective synergy. We are now looking at early help with families and creating positive impact. Behaviour is about communication: understanding what children are trying to say, not judging their mental state, and having an arsenal of things to help e.g. Drawing and Talking, Sandplay. Therapeutic play – child-led/child-centred play – are non-invasive ways to help children to work through their challenges and we want to get in early so things do not escalate. Children have many different needs, and our approach is to let them be heard and show them they are valued and provide the support they need by building their resilience to cope and move forward. Again, we do not want to suppress feelings, and want to get the message across that how they feel is OK. I think there should be someone like me in every school, and it was interesting to read how the government is working on a funding allocation in order to train a Designated Mental Health Lead in every educational setting in England by 2025.”
In summary, just how important is the focus on mental health and wellbeing?
“Children’s wellbeing should be at the forefront of everything. It comes way before learning, and ultimately we need to look at mental health in exactly the same way as we do physical health. Children present with an array of problems and so much earlier. By building resilience, and giving them tools they need to live a fun and productive life, we can nurture them. The impact of this is seen in the development of children with behaviour problems, their attendance and academic achievement/ progress journey.”
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Trumpington Park Primary School joins global Planning Learning Spaces design pilot
Mon 14 Jun 2021Trumpington Park Primary School, part of Cambridge Primary Education Trust, has signed up to an international project that could fundamentally rethink space utilisation in the classroom.
Planning Learning Spaces was published in October 2019 as a guide for anyone involved in the planning and design of learning environments. The book brought together educationalists and innovative school architects from all over the world to pool their collective expertise and inspire the design of more intelligent learning spaces.
To support this, Planning Learning Spaces in Practice was launched to help schools translate their educational vision into learning space design principles, enabling them to create new, or refurbish existing, spaces that actively support their learning goals. Schools are guided through a reflective process, building the link between curriculum and design via a structured framework. Focusing on the school’s vision, values and ethos, the process helps translate learning behaviours and activities into design principles.
Trumpington Park Primary School was invited to participate in the global pilot of this Planning Learning Spaces in Practice project. Offering a new approach to learning space design, the Planning Learning Spaces team is working with the Cambridge school to help colleagues align their physical learning environments with their educational vision, in a way that supports the children’s personalised and independent learning.
The school was heralded as state-of-the art when it opened its doors in September 2017. Entering the central hall of the school, which opens onto the galleried double-height ICT and library resource centre, it is easy to see why. However, the staff were still presented with the inevitable standardised classrooms (measuring approximately 55m2 for up to 30 children) in which to work, and school leaders were looking for innovative and cost-effective ways to transform these standard-issue rooms into inspirational learning environments.
One advantage to a new school like Trumpington Park Primary is that not all classrooms are in use for the first few years, so by joining the Planning Learning Spaces in Practice pilot project the school has the opportunity to develop its learning spaces in alignment with its educational vision. Meetings and workshops were held with the Planning Learning Spaces team to define the school’s vision, values, ethos and current practice. The school has then used the Planning Learning Spaces Design Framework to develop what it wants to do next, looking at every aspect of school life, and how this relates to the design of learning spaces.
“We started from the heart of our ethos and our values, and looked at those in terms of what we wanted to achieve in our teaching and learning, but then assessed the constraints of the current classrooms we have in being able to get that vision to work,” said Mel Shute, Headteacher at Trumpington Park Primary School. “Whilst we want to emphasise collaboration and ownership of learning, this can sometimes feel restricted by the furniture and fixed features of a space and make it harder for children to be able to do some of the things we feel are fundamental in their learning. From there, we have looked at different models to enable children to be able to work in different ways in that space.”
With social distancing in place, Mel revealed that “children have been more separated than we would want, bearing in mind that one of our key values is collaboration, and one of the key drivers of the space”, but she is focused on the expected longer-term impact: “What we anticipate, and what we have seen from small groups of children using the space at this time, is being able to have a high level of flexibility around the organisation of a space will have a huge impact on the way in which teaching and learning happens there. Now we are looking at all the different learning that can happen in that space in very different ways, and teaching children how they can have an impact on their independence and ownership within that space. Having the children as a very central part of the classroom environment will, I believe, make a significant difference to their overall development.”
She added: “You look at a classroom and you take it as it is, particularly in a new build. This project has really forced our hand to look at that space in a very different way, go in with a different pair of glasses, and this has been refreshing.”
Terry White, Project Director and co-author of Planning Learning Spaces, explained the philosophy behind the overall project. “We know the impact learning environments have on educational outcomes, yet the majority of school classrooms are over 40 years old and even new builds fail to learn the lessons of research like The Clever Classrooms report,” he said. “The project involves spending time engaging with the teachers to help the school effectively recreate their learning spaces so that they align with their vision for learning and teaching. We have developed a structured framework that enables the school to reimagine their future environments for learning.”
The Planning Learning Spaces Design Framework builds consensus throughout the teaching staff and the wider school community to support sustained change, empowering schools to be creators of a new, ongoing relationship between pedagogy and space. UK Lead Project Facilitator Bhavini Pandya works with key staff and students throughout the process to ensure all views are accounted for, and that the newly-designed spaces can be used as effectively as possible for all learning opportunities. As a former teacher herself, Bhavini understands the clear link between pedagogy and space and how this can lead to better learning outcomes.
Professor Peter Barrett, author of the Clever Classrooms report, is monitoring the project to see how the learning outcomes of pupils are affected by this ‘hands on’ approach to creating their own learning environments. “The Planning Learning Spaces approach represents common sense about the positive articulation of spaces and pedagogy,” he said. “Delivering a methodology that makes this connection explicit, and ultimately driven by educational imperatives, is a really important potential contribution and I look forward to being involved in the rigorous assessment of outputs from this project.”
The Planning Learning Spaces in Practice process is suitable for schools looking to repurpose old spaces, or for those designing new buildings, and helps to ensure a successful transition into these purpose-designed learning spaces.
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School impact case studies published
Tue 08 Jun 2021The real-world benefits of being part of Cambridge Primary Education Trust (CPET) have been revealed in a new series of school impact case studies published on our website: https://www.cpetrust.co.uk/our-impact/.
Each School Advisory Board (SAB) Chair was interviewed in the spring term about their reflections on their school’s journey within the Trust, the resulting key educational and operational impacts, and their wider views on the value of being a member of the CPET family.
CPET Executive Principal/CEO Lesley Birch said: “I would like to thank each SAB Chair who has taken the time to speak our colleague who developed the case studies. I am proud to hear first-hand how the Trust is living and breathing its overarching vision and ethos, and offer. We are seeing clear benefits and impact of CPET’s approach on schools, teachers, professional/ administrative staff, pupils and communities.”